Palm Oil has indirectly caused the deaths of approximately 50% of the orangutans in the Indonesian portion of the Borneo region. Much of the palm oil that is used as an ingredient in food and other common household products such as soap originates from palm oil harvested from palms grown in former rain forests in the Borneo region-also one of the few remaining natural habitats for orangutans.  

Not only are the orangutans dying because of a loss their natural habitat, they are being “killed by workers who see them as nuisances during the logging process”. The Indonesian government has recognized that there is a problem with the logging industry in the Borneo region, but has not yet taken any actions to call for a moratorium on deforestation of the rain forests. As a result, much of the rain forests continue to be clear-cut in order to provide land to plant palms.

Greenpeace is asking consumers  and suppliers purchasing goods made from palm oil to try and determine where the palm oil is grown before buying them to ensure that the palm oil is coming from sustainable sources. Some manufacturers in the UK are seeking only palm oil from sustainable sources, and consumer advocates are calling for legislation requiring labels on food products to specify what kind of vegetable oil is being used and if the oil is from a sustainable source.

Much of the problem in Indonesia stems from the fact that the export of palm oil is the third largest industry in the country. 85% of Borneo’s rain forests have already been cut down and the unfortunate reality is that Borneo’s orangutans are expected to become the first orangutan population to go extinct in the world.

In a surprising twist last year, scientists discovered 2,000 orangutans that no one knew existed hidden in the rocks of Indonesian Borneo, suggesting that some orangutans adapted by finding new habitats.  Because the rocky areas where the orangutans are living are not considered good areas for palm plantations, there is less threat for this specific population of orangutans.

In contrast to the Indonesian part of Borneo, the Malaysian portion of Borneo contains orangutan sanctuaries, designed with the idea of preserving both the orangutans and their natural habitat. Many of the sanctuaries in Borneo are under pressure to send some of the orangutans to the mainland of Malaysia for projects in Kuala Lumpur and other parts of Malaysia. However, the Borneo sanctuaries have balked at the idea while insisting that the native orangutan populations remain in Borneo.